The bill for water consumption in Santa Cruz de Tenerife will experience a 13.4% increase in the near future. This adjustment aims to align the current rates with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the agreement the city’s Council has with the Mixed Water Company (Emmasa). The announcement of this increment was made to DIARIO DE AVISOS by Public Services Councillor, Carlos Tarife. He mentioned that this decision was reached during last Monday’s local Government Board meeting and now requires approval from the Prices Commission of the Government of the Canary Islands for implementation.
Since 2022, the council, in collaboration with Emmasa, has maintained a constant bi-monthly water fee. However, due to additional costs arising from desalination, transportation, electricity prices, and several legal rulings against the City Council for not revising the rates, they have proposed this increase.
Tarife explained that the hike in fees will be applicable to sections 21 and 23, primarily affecting residential water usage, covering around 69,000 housing agreements and about 12,000 contracts for warehouses and offices in the capital.
Practically speaking, based on the bill comparisons prepared by Emmasa, it has been disclosed that with the new rates, the bi-monthly fees for a 12 cubic metre (m3) meter will shift from 32.58 euros to 36.95 euros (an increase of 4.37 euros); for 20 m3 meters, it will increase from 40.62 euros to 46.08 euros (a rise of 5.46 euros); for 30 m3 meters, the price will alter from 59.56 euros to 67.59 euros (an increase of 8.03 euros); for 34 m3 meters, it will climb from 67.14 euros to 76.20 euros (an increase of 9.06 euros); and for 65 m3 meters, the fixed fee will surge from 136.97 euros to 143.55 euros (an increase of 18.38 euros). However, these figures will be lower for large families, where it will increase from 126.47 euros to 143.55 euros (a hike of 17.08 euros).
Regarding agreements for warehouses and offices, the pricing adjustments will be as follows: for non-residential 12 cubic metres (m3) meters, the cost would move from 39.91 euros to 45.25 euros (a difference of 5.34 euros); for 24 m3 meters, the price will rise from 65.33 euros to 74.06 euros (an increase of 8.73 euros); for 30 m3 meters, the cost will go up from 84.79 euros to 96.15 euros (an increase of 11.36 euros); for 40 m3 meters, the proposed rise will adjust the price from 117.24 euros to 132.97 euros (a difference of 15.73 euros); whereas for 66 m3 meters, it will escalate from 201.60 euros to 228.69 euros (an increase of 27.09 euros).
The last adjustment in municipal water prices occurred in 2022
In July 2022, the Santa Cruz City Council raised the water charges by 0.68 euros to align them with the CPI, following a decade of stagnant rates. The impact of this increment was necessary to cover the additional costs incurred, resulting in an increase from 8.4 euros to 1.37 euros per bi-monthly cycle.
